A number of food items are packaged and sold in cylindrical-shaped rolls, including raw or cooked sausage and other meats, cookie dough, and the like. The dimensions of food rolls can vary from one product to the next, but regardless of these dimensional variations, most food rolls, when sold, will have a uniform circular cross section over most of their length and rounded or tapered ends.
Food rolls are usually encased in unitary, throw-away plastic packages. The external surface of a food roll package generally displays information pertaining to the maker of the food product, ingredients of the food product, expiration or freshness dates, etc. However, the rounded ends of food rolls are generally not well suited for displaying such information, or other information such as advertising and marketing indicia. Consequently, a need exists for a device that can be used on the ends of food rolls for displaying information.
Food rolls often come in packages that contain more food material than will be consumed at one time. The buyer of such a food roll will usually cut off a portion of the food roll for immediate use, and save the remainder of the food roll for later use. The saved portion of the food roll is left with an open end that exposes the food item in the food roll to the environment outside of the package. These packages generally do not include a closure means that can be used to seal off and protect the exposed end of the food roll, so the consumer must provide his or her own means for sealing the end of the food roll, such as aluminum foil or plastic wraps that are commonly available in grocery stores. The use of such items on a repetitive basis may be undesirable to many people, who would prefer to accomplish this task by means of a reusable cover.
From the foregoing, it is seen that a need exists for a reusable cover that can be installed onto the ends of food rolls, for the purpose of displaying information such as marketing and advertising indicia, and/or for the purpose of minimizing the exposure of an opened end of a food roll to the environment.